Indiana Real Estate Broker Exam — All Questions

Indiana real estate licensing is regulated by the Indiana Real Estate Commission, which operates under the:

• a.Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (PLA)✓
• b.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• c.National Association of REALTORS
• d.local multiple listing service

The Indiana Real Estate Commission sets licensing and practice standards, and the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (PLA) provides its administrative support, processing applications, renewals, and enforcement under Indiana Code Title 25.

In Indiana, the entry-level real estate license (the level a new practitioner earns to begin working under supervision) is called a:

• a.Salesperson
• b.Broker✓
• c.Affiliate broker
• d.Associate

Indiana consolidated its licensing so the entry-level license is titled 'broker.' A new Indiana broker must work under a 'managing broker.' Indiana no longer issues a 'salesperson' license, unlike many other states, though the role is functionally the equivalent.

An Indiana broker must conduct licensed real estate activities under the supervision of a:

• a.Managing broker✓
• b.Attorney
• c.The Indiana Real Estate Commission directly
• d.No one; brokers work fully independently

In Indiana, a licensed broker affiliates with and is supervised by a managing broker, who is responsible for the broker's activities and for the company's trust funds and records. A new broker cannot operate independently until qualifying as a managing broker.

What offense does a person commit by performing the acts of a broker in Indiana without a license?

• a.A Class B misdemeanor for each transaction
• b.A Class A misdemeanor for each transaction
• c.A Level 6 felony for each transaction
• d.A Class A infraction for each transaction✓

Unlicensed brokerage is an infraction rather than a crime, and each transaction is a separate offense. On conviction the court must add to any fine the amount of the fee or other compensation earned in committing the offense. Cite: IC 25-34.1-6-2.

What is the most the Indiana real estate recovery fund may pay on any single judgment?

• a.Twenty thousand dollars✓
• b.Ten thousand dollars
• c.Twenty-five thousand dollars
• d.Fifty thousand dollars

The fund pays the actual and direct loss left unpaid on a final judgment for embezzlement, or for unlawfully obtaining money or property by false pretenses, a device, trickery or forgery. Court costs may be included; attorney's fees and punitive damages may not. Cite: IC 25-34.1-7-4(a).

What is the aggregate lifetime limit the Indiana real estate recovery fund may pay with respect to any one licensee?

• a.$20,000 for all claims against that licensee
• b.$100,000 for all claims against that licensee
• c.$250,000 for all claims against that licensee
• d.$50,000 for all claims against that licensee✓

The per-judgment cap is twenty thousand dollars and the lifetime aggregate for one licensee is fifty thousand. If two or more valid claims against the same licensee would exceed that aggregate, the commission distributes the fifty thousand among the claimants in proportion to their claims. Cite: IC 25-34.1-7-4(a); IC 25-34.1-7-5(a).

The recovery fund pays a claim caused by an Indiana licensee. When may that licensee be licensed again?

• a.Immediately, since the fund is subrogated to the claim
• b.After three years, whether or not the fund is repaid
• c.After repaying the fund in full, with no interest charged
• d.After repaying the fund in full with 12% interest✓

The commission must suspend the judgment debtor's license when it pays, and the licensee is not eligible to be licensed again as a broker until the amount paid from the fund is repaid in full with interest of twelve percent per annum. Cite: IC 25-34.1-7-10(a).

An Indiana licensee is convicted of a crime. How soon must the commission receive a copy of the judgment?

• a.Not more than 30 days after the conviction✓
• b.Not more than 10 days after the conviction
• c.Not more than 60 days after the conviction
• d.At the licensee's next renewal application

The licensee must send the commission both the complaint or other information describing the crime and the judgment of conviction within thirty days of the conviction date. Discipline for a conviction substantially related to real estate practice then proceeds under IC 25-1-11. Cite: IC 25-34.1-3-12; IC 25-34.1-6-3.

The Indiana broker license application fee is $50. What else does the commission's fee rule require at issuance and renewal?

• a.$10 for the investigative fund✓
• b.$10 for the real estate recovery fund
• c.$20 for the investigative fund
• d.$25 for the education advisory council

The rule adds ten dollars for the investigative fund administered under IC 25-34.1-8-7.5, which is why the Professional Licensing Agency quotes sixty dollars for a broker application. The recovery fund is financed separately, by a surcharge the commission assesses only when the fund falls below its statutory floor. Cite: 876 IAC 5-3-1; IC 25-34.1-7-2.

The commission levies a civil penalty for a violation with no statutory maximum. What does its 2025 fine rule set?

• a.$500 for the violation
• b.$2,500 for the violation
• c.$5,000 for the violation
• d.$1,000 for the violation✓

The rule filed in April 2025 sets fines and civil penalties at fifty percent of any statutory maximum, or one thousand dollars where no maximum exists. The amount may move up or down for listed mitigating and aggravating factors, but never below one hundred dollars. Cite: 876 IAC 5-4-1.

An owner manages only their own apartment units on one parcel. Up to how many units stays outside the licensing act?

• a.Four apartment units
• b.Eight apartment units
• c.Twenty apartment units
• d.Twelve apartment units✓

The act exempts a person whose only regulated activities relate to at most twelve apartment units located on a single parcel or on contiguous parcels. Separate exemptions cover hotel stays under thirty days and apartment rental by an individual whom a licensed broker employs or supervises. Cite: IC 25-34.1-3-2(b)(5), (6).

An unlicensed out-of-state broker wants to work an Indiana commercial deal. What does the statute require?

• a.Cooperation with an Indiana broker under a written agreement✓
• b.A temporary Indiana broker permit issued by the commission
• c.Registration of the transaction with the secretary of state
• d.Escrow funds held in the out-of-state broker's trust account

The out-of-state commercial broker must work in cooperation with an Indiana licensee, sign a written cooperation and compensation agreement, furnish proof of good standing, file an irrevocable consent to suit in Indiana, name the Indiana broker in all advertising, and place all escrow funds in the Indiana broker's trust account. The Indiana broker keeps the records five years. Cite: IC 25-34.1-3-11.

How long does an aggrieved person have to file a discriminatory housing practice complaint with the Indiana civil rights commission?

• a.Not later than 180 days after the practice
• b.Not later than two years after the practice
• c.Not later than three years after the practice
• d.Not later than one year after the practice✓

The administrative complaint must be filed within one year, in writing, under oath and on the form the commission prescribes. A private civil action in the circuit or superior court carries its own one-year limit under IC 22-9.5-7-1. Cite: IC 22-9.5-6-1.

An Indiana landlord refuses to rent to an applicant because she is pregnant. Which protected class is engaged?

• a.Marital status under the Indiana Fair Housing Act
• b.Source of income under the Indiana Fair Housing Act
• c.Familial status under the Indiana Fair Housing Act✓
• d.Physical disability under the Indiana Fair Housing Act

Indiana defines a familial status act to include discrimination because the person is pregnant, is domiciled with a child under eighteen as that child's parent or legal custodian, or is in the process of obtaining legal custody of one. Marital status and source of income are not protected classes under IC 22-9.5-5-1. Cite: IC 22-9.5-1-2.